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kcantor said:
closing half of the street for "this stretch" for two years and the other half for two years and repeating that a dozen times, sometimes for stretches as short as 3 blocks, is not a recipe for more of anything, never mind more walkable.
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Agreed. And city admin did put forward a plan to have the full reimagine Jasper plan from 109-124 streets as well as the eastern section to be completed within the current budget cycle which ends next year. But the city council of the day, in looking at the budget, elected to stretch it out. There actually is no current funding allocated for any more work and the soonest the next stage will happen is 2023.
 
TAS said:
Agreed. And city admin did put forward a plan to have the full reimagine Jasper plan from 109-124 streets as well as the eastern section to be completed within the current budget cycle which ends next year. But the city council of the day, in looking at the budget, elected to stretch it out. There actually is no current funding allocated for any more work and the soonest the next stage will happen is 2023.
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I would have liked to see all of Jasper done at once and I have a lot of sympathy for local businesses caught between COVID and constant construction. To be fair to the city though, I believe the signs on Jasper East indicate that those 4 blocks will cost 55 million to renew. That isn't chump change and doing the entire Avenue would likely mean other equally important projects would have to wait.

I don't disagree that in some cases the city should wait until it has the money to do all needed work at once, but there are real financial considerations that don't always make that easy...
 
tkoe_ said:
I don't disagree that in some cases the city should wait until it has the money to do all needed work at once, but there are real financial considerations that don't always make that easy...
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It is always a matter of priorities. There will never be enough money.
But, I would think that the city's main avenue would rank high on that list of priorities. Especially, since it has been left to decay for decades.

There is no competition in my ward, and the current counsellor will be re-elected. I just sent him an angry email with some "beautiful" pics attached.
 
It is sort of like going to the dentist isn't it? - uncomfortable and you want it to be over as quick as possible, not dragged out over years and years. Oh, I think 'set the precedent to continue ... ' does sound like talk from someone who walks through City Hall, but maybe not through the city streets under construction.

Maybe most of those who work for the City are too young, but the lengthy closure of Jasper Ave to build the LRT killed off a lot of retail business along it. Sure, it is great if we have nicer sidewalks and it is a good step, but if there are no shops for people to go to, then it will remain a dead zone.

One thing additional thing I would suggest for Jasper Ave that might help a lot would be median with trees, somewhat like what was done on sections of Whyte Ave. However, I've noticed the City is good at planting trees, but not caring for them, so better get hardy ones that don't need much water.
 
TAS said:
Agreed. And city admin did put forward a plan to have the full reimagine Jasper plan from 109-124 streets as well as the eastern section to be completed within the current budget cycle which ends next year. But the city council of the day, in looking at the budget, elected to stretch it out. There actually is no current funding allocated for any more work and the soonest the next stage will happen is 2023.
Click to expand...
ah yes... great planning from a perspective view of the end product of their individual project with little to no thought given to the implementation or the cumulative effects of the implementation..

do all of jasper avenue, shutting down both sides in both directions for two construction seasons at the same time 102 avenue was closed and 103 avenue isn't a through street and 104 avenue is restricted more than it isn't for ice district construction and lrt construction and bike lanes are going in on 100 avenue and 105 avenue... no wonder council "elected to stretch it out" and it probably had more to do with understanding the implications and the consequences on the street rather than on any particular budget cycle. as for budget cycles and project planning and length, how the administration of a city with a 6 month construction season at best doesn't insist on 7 day a week construction when it comes to roadwork also continues to amaze me. it's as if there is no recognition whatsoever of the cost of the additional disruption any more than the cost of carrying everything over and mobilizing and demobilizing twice as much as necessary etc.

the fact administration put it forward just proves they have no idea of what it's like to live through this stuff (or to provide emergency services through this stuff). trying to raise those kinds of concerns at the open houses is like talking to a deer in the headlights. the planning is entirely devoted to the end product with little or no thought given to the implementation or the results of the implementation.
 
^
in getting from downtown to keswick yesterday, i must have driven past/through dozens of kilometres of construction zones with beautiful weather and not a speck of work being done whether on jasper avenue or saskatchewan drive or 99th street or terwillegar drive or anthony henday (although i think that might be provincial - i'm not sure who's paying for what regarding the current work).
 
kcantor said:
^
in getting from downtown to keswick yesterday, i must have driven past/through dozens of kilometres of construction zones with beautiful weather and not a speck of work being done whether on jasper avenue or saskatchewan drive or 99th street or terwillegar drive or anthony henday (although i think that might be provincial - i'm not sure who's paying for what regarding the current work).
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When I drove down Jasper yesterday they painti the lines on ready for today’s opening.
 
kcantor said:
ah yes... great planning from a perspective view of the end product of their individual project with little to no thought given to the implementation or the cumulative effects of the implementation..

do all of jasper avenue, shutting down both sides in both directions for two construction seasons at the same time 102 avenue was closed and 103 avenue isn't a through street and 104 avenue is restricted more than it isn't for ice district construction and lrt construction and bike lanes are going in on 100 avenue and 105 avenue... no wonder council "elected to stretch it out" and it probably had more to do with understanding the implications and the consequences on the street rather than on any particular budget cycle. as for budget cycles and project planning and length, how the administration of a city with a 6 month construction season at best doesn't insist on 7 day a week construction when it comes to roadwork also continues to amaze me. it's as if there is no recognition whatsoever of the cost of the additional disruption any more than the cost of carrying everything over and mobilizing and demobilizing twice as much as necessary etc.

the fact administration put it forward just proves they have no idea of what it's like to live through this stuff (or to provide emergency services through this stuff). trying to raise those kinds of concerns at the open houses is like talking to a deer in the headlights. the planning is entirely devoted to the end product with little or no thought given to the implementation or the results of the implementation.
Click to expand...
I do get the sense they have tunnel vision and giving feedback is like talking to a robot about something beyond their parameters. At best you get a response like 'it does not compute!'

I don't know how we have arrived at this, but this is partly a symptom of an overly bureaucratic culture, where thought or initiative is not allowed or at least very much discouraged.
 
OPEN!

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https://twitter.com/x/status/1445475157863137293
 
The City absolutely MUST hold off on any further development on Jasper Ave, 124 St, and 102 Ave west of 124 St until the Valley Line West LRT construction is completed, including the Wellington Bridge replacement. Full stop. No exceptions.
 
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